Wishes
by MyXCryingXAngel
Summary: Angel and Cassiday are two girls who get invited to the Whammy house to help solve a murder. But what happens when, other than finding the criminal, they also find lov? And can Angel fight her demons, or get devoured? MattxOC MelloxOC Rated M for future !
1. Prolouge

Near inwardly cringed at the outbreak of his companion. He made a show of cleaning out his ear with his pinky, all the while ignoring the cursing that was coming from behind him.

"When were you planning on telling us?!" Mello shouted, slamming his hands onto the table. Near felt anger radiating off of him like heat from a sun.

"I told you now, didn't I?" Near set a blue Lego on top of a red one, marking the beginning of a Lego tower. He was surprised at Matt's silence, expecting two yelling voices instead of one. He glanced over, not at all surprised to see him playing his Game Boy.

"Now's not good enough! They could be here any minute!"

Near sighed and finally turned around to look at Mello. "I told you now because you would make a huge fit about them and might actually sabotage their chances at finally getting into this Institution. I know how you work, Mello. Always wanting your way. This place isn't just for the male population. Females are welcome, too. Besides, I would love to see what they might actually do."

Mello couldn't believe what he was saying. _Girls_? _Here_?! "So that's it?! You wanted to satisfy your curiosity?! What if they can't help us at all? Then what?!"

"They are top of their class. They have brains." Near replied coolly.

Matt put the game on pause. He was getting sick off the yelling. "What if they are spies, for criminals?"

"Exactly!" Mello shouted, smirking.

"I have looked into their backgrounds. No criminal records." Near replied, setting a manila envelope on the table. "Take a look."

Mello stared at the folder like it was gum on the bottom of his book. Matt ignored it altogether, and started to play his Game Boy.

Near looked from one to the other. Seeing no response, he turned back around to finish his tower. "Besides," he continued. "It could be fun."

Mello laughed without humor. "Yeah, right."


	2. Chapter 1

Angel stared at the building, one word popping into her head: _Creepy_. She smiled to herself. She liked creepy.

"Angel?"

She turned toward the voice, looking at her best -friend, Cassidy, who, at the moment, seemed frightened. "This doesn't look good."

Angel shrugged her shoulders. "It never does." She picked up her bag and gestured for Cassidy to follow. "We should get inside."

At Cassidy's quick nod, they walked up to the door and knocked.

No answer.

Cassidy seemed to shiver in spite of herself. Angel grinned at her. "Scared? I thought you were supposed to be my 'President'." Angel said, referring to her place in the Math Club.

Cassidy glared at her. "No, just cold. And you, my Secretary/Treasurer, should get me some hot chocolate before I become an ice cube."

Angel laughed. "Get it yourself." She teased.

Cassidy glared at the door. "I just might." She said, knocking louder. Angel thought that any second she would break down the door.

Angel was staring at her breath, which were now puffy clouds, when the door finally opened. She looked at the opener and saw a handsome boy with white hair, white shirt, and jeans. He was slightly hunched over and had dark eyes. "Yes?"

Cassidy, who lost her voice at the sight of such a being, couldn't answer. Angel rolled her eyes at her and answered the boy. "Hello," she said, putting on her polite voice. "We are here to see the Whammy boys. I got a call, like, a couple days ago, "She said, not bothering to count because of the cold. "…and got this address."

The boy looked them over. A pixie-cut, freckle faced red-head and a shoulder-length blond hair girl with bright blue eyes. Angel knew they were quite a sight. "Come on in." He said, opening the door for them. They hurried inside and took off their coats, relishing in the newfound warmth.

Angel looked around, shocked at the size of the mansion, and had the urge to explore. Cassidy whistled softly and Angel looked at her and cracked a smile. Cassidy smiled back, thinking the same thing as Angel: _Exquisite!_

"You must be tired from your trip. Please, join me in the study." Near said, walking away from them and disappearing to the right.

Angel snickered and whispered, "Oooh! A study!" to Cassidy, and Cassidy giggled. They walked toward the direction that the white-haired boy disappeared to, overcome by giggles.

xXxXxXx

Matt sat at the top of the stairs, watching the girls disappear from sight through the smoke of his cigarette. He had no idea how he was going to handle this, or, better yet, Mello.

He jumped up and walked back to the room in which Mello was waiting for him. When he entered, Mello turned. "Well?"

Matt shrugged. "They are girls." He made his way over to the bed, collapsed onto it, and turned on his Game Boy, exhaling smoke as he went.

Mello seemed exasperated. "Yes, I know. But what do they look like?"

Matt hit a couple buttons. "One is a red-head and the other is a blond. They look like they are friends."

Matt moved his legs when Mello sat on the bed, taking a bite of the chocolate bar in his hand. He sighed. "Do they seem annoying?"

Matt shook his head and put out his cigarette. "Not from where I was at." Mello sighed again. "Maybe we should _try_ to like them. " Matt went on. "It could be good for a change."

Matt could see Mello look at him from the corner of his eye. He waited. Finally, Mello nodded his head. "Yeah, fine. But no guarantees."

And with that, Matt went back to playing his Game Boy.


	3. Chapter 2

**OH! Forgot to talk!!**

**Um…ok. I thought this up for a while now and decided to do this. It may not be very good…and for that I apologize. (;-;)**

**Ok…are we good? Great. **

**Death note/characters:DISCLAIMER!! (Only, Angel and Cassidy are mine…)**

**Ok, ACTION!! X3**

**--------------------------------------------------------------------**

In a mansion full of intellects, there is a room.

In that room is a big bed, covered with a down comforter.

Underneath that comforter lies a girl with blond hair, as bright and golden as the sun.

And that girl…is seriously pissed off.

Angel woke up with a start, checking the alarm clock, and nearly throwing it across the room in surprise. She jumps out of bed, combing through her hair with her fingers as she runs to the bathroom. She brushes her teeth in record time, and then rushes to the bedroom, stripping off clothes on her way. She slips on her new school outfit and shoes, grabs her make-up bag, and stands in front of the mirror. She notices her hair looks decent so she put on skin colored powder and black eyeliner. She throws them on the bed, promising the heavens she'll pick it up later.

She had just grabbed her school bag when a knock sounded at the door, Cassidy's voice following soon after. "Angel, are you-"

The door swung open to reveal a very awake, very ready, and very flushed Angel. Cassidy jumped, not expecting the sight. Angel rolled her eyes and grabbed Cassidy's hand, all the while muttering, "We're gonna be late!"

They rushed down the stairs, not noticing Near in the kitchen as they passed. Angel backed up a few steps until she reached the doorway. "Hey, Near!" She said cheerfully.

He looked up, startled, from the jigsaw puzzle he was currently working on. "Oh, hello."

Cassidy also joined Angel. "Aren't you coming to school?"

Near looked from Angel to Cassidy, not yet used to the different gender, and the cheery auras they released. "I will be there later."

Angel winked at him. "Okay. See ya!" She dragged Cassidy off and out the door, not staying long enough to see the faint shade of pink color Near's cheeks.

xXxXx

Matt walked down the steps, walking into the kitchen to see a faintly blushing Near.

"Yo." He greeted, getting the jug of milk from the fridge.

Near only gave a nod as his reply, fixing a puzzle piece in the half way done puzzle. Mello raced into the kitchen.

"Where the hell are those damn girls?! I'm gonna rip their throats out for waking me up!" He bit off a piece of his chocolate bar with a little more force than necessary.

Near sighed, wishing he had the girl's company instead of the guy's. "They went to school."

Mello and Matt were startled. "What?! Where at?" Mello asked.

Near finished up the puzzle. "Here, of course."

Matt imagined it and laughed. "This will be great!"

Mello turned a glare onto him. "Why?"

"Two girls in an all-boys-school. I wonder what will happen!" Matt laughed again, imagining it.

"Now you sound like Near."

Near turned black eyes onto them. "I'm sure they can handle it."

"Yes, we shall see," Matt challenged. "If you made a mistake."

xXxXx

Angel was starting to regret accepting the invitation from Near. She yawned for the seventh time that day.

"Oh, please, Angel! Give it a rest already. It's only third hour!" Cassidy said, getting annoyed.

"But it's so boring!" Angel whined.

Cassidy rolled her eyes. Angel was almost always bored with school. If it didn't interest her, she ignored whatever the teacher was saying and daydreamed. This had gotten her yelled at more than once.

The bell rang and Angel stood up, suddenly less dead looking than she had looked a couple minutes ago. Cassidy followed her out of class, then, realizing she forgot her stuff, turned around.

A boy with glasses, snot running out of his nose, and a bowl-cut hairdo handed her her colorful schoolbag. "Here, you forgot it."

She smiled, and tried not to pay attention to the snot. "T-thank you."

"Cassidy, hurry up!" Angel yelled, trying to hide the desperate tone in her voice. Getting attention from a boy was great. But twenty boys?! Too much!

Cassidy ran over to her. "Where to now?"

Angel looked at the schedule. "Gym!" She laughed. "Yay!"

Cassidy groaned. "Yea…great." She said with little enthusiasm.

Angel play-punched her in the arm. "It's gonna be fun!"

They rushed to the gym and changed. Angel felt uncomfortable in her uniform. Short shorts and a t-shirt than doesn't even cover them?! Cassidy had to drag an unwilling Angel out into the court.

**Haha!! Ok, continued next chapter!! (I was gonna make this a long chap but decided not to! Hehe!)**


	4. Chapter 3

"Okay, listen up!" The coach yelled. "We are going to play…Dodgeball!"

The class cheered. Angel cheered with them and Cassidy mumbled, "That sucks."

They lined up, Angel on the opposing team of Cassidy, and got ready to run. When the coach blew the whistle, Angel didn't move. "The balls will come to me." She thought out loud.

People threw balls, dodged or hit, and got sent out. Angel threw a couple, and dodged quite a few, all the while laughing.

Cassidy just dodged. What was it with boys throwing the balls at girls?!

A ball was coming towards her and she flinched, preparing for the hit. A boy ran in front of her and caught the ball, sending the other player out.

Cassidy let out a breath and blushed when she had seen how cute her savior was. He had black hair and piercing blue eyes. "Are you ok?" He asked.

She blushed even more when she realized she had been staring. "Y-yes! Thank you!"

"No problem." He smiled. "Now, where's my reward?"

"W-what?!" Cassidy wasn't sure if she heard him right.

His smile turned into a smirk. "You know, a reward. Like a kiss." He paused and looked her up and down. "Or your bod-"

A ball hit him in the back of his head, causing him to fall face-first into the ground. He slowly sat back up and looked at the other side of the gym, yelling "Who did that?!"

Angel giggled at how angry he was. "Oops, sorry!" She said, but her tone said she wasn't sorry at all.

He started walking towards her. "You little…"

She inwardly smirked, seeing him get right where she wanted him, and took the challenge. "What? You didn't like your reward?" She grabbed a second ball. "How about another?"

That was twice he had gotten hit with that ball. This time he didn't hesitate. He got up and charged at her. She stood ready.

Only, the fight was cut before it was began. A third ball was hurtled at him, but it hit lower than the first two. Much lower!

The kid fell to the ground, holding himself below the belt.

"Isn't that three outs already? Gosh, Tsubasa, I thought you weren't the competitive type!"

Angel turned toward the voice, and came face-to-face with a striped shirt-covered chest.

"Are you ok?"

Angel looked up and studied his face. Auburn hair hung over soft, brown eyes. She knew she was staring, but she couldn't help it. It was like those eyes were a hole, and she was overcome by the emotions that were buried there.

Angel was shaken out of her thoughts when Cassidy glomped her. "Why did you do that?!" She demanded.

Angel blinked a few times and remembered where she was. She looked back at the boy and realized he was waiting for her answer. "Yes, I am. Thank you." When he walked away, giving a half-hearted "No problem" for a response, Angel turned to Cassidy. She looked worried, not at all concerned about the boy hurt. Angel had to make her smile.

"Because I love you, dork!" She said it like it was obvious.

Cassidy laughed as her worries vanished.

Angel laughed with her, and started to walk off to get changed. Cassidy went inside the room, but Angel stopped short when she overheard two boys talking.

"Matt is such a show off!" One said, jealousy clear in his voice.

"I know!_ I_ wanted to save Angel!" Said his companion.

Angel walked into the room, so lost in thought she didn't hear Cassidy ask her what's wrong.

_Matt, huh? Interesting._

xXxXx

"What the hell was that?!" Mello demanded.

Matt rested his hands behind his head and leaned against the wall. "Nothing." He said, uninterested. "Just looked like she needed some help."

Mello ate the last of his chocolate bar. "So, those are them, huh?"

"Yup."

"Hm." Mello thought about how the red head's face looked, scared and confused. Didn't she know how to fight? But it was lucky that her friend got that guy's attention to her.

Matt stood up when the bell rang. "Let's go to class."

Mello got up to, opening another chocolate bar, not dare admitting that he wished _he_ had saved the red head.

**Awe! Ok, it's taking forever to get to the romance. So, next chapter I'll get… maybe more romance…and onto the crime!!**


	5. Chapter 4

**I know…I don't update…. ******** …..I'm just lazy here!!**

**Ok…onto the show! (It's taking forever….sigh)**

Mello knew he was staring, but he couldn't help himself.

He watched as Cassidy and Angel sat a couple rows in front of him, sitting in the middle of the class. They didn't seem to notice his staring, or his mouth agape, because Cassidy focused on the teacher while Angel slumped a little in her chair and put earphones into her ears. Mello could hear a faint rhythm to a song, and was surprised. He recognized the beat to 'Going Under' by Evanescence, but didn't know Angel was the type to listen to rock music. She was bobbing her head, but Mello was more interested in Cassidy, every now and then glancing at Angel, and rolling her eyes. The teacher was lecturing, and Cassidy seemed to take every word into her mind and keep it there, as if storing information.

The teacher started calling up boys to answer math problems, and noticing Angel in her own world, called on her. Angel wasn't even looking at him, Mello doubted she heard him, and Cassidy nudged her with her elbow. Angel paused her music and looked at the teacher. He gave her a skeptical look and held out the Expo marker. Angel stood up and took it. "Go easy on me, please. I'm not very good at math." The smile she gave the boy she was up against seemed to melt him. Mello resisted the urge to roll his eyes and seen Cassidy shake her head. The teacher said 'Go!' and they scribbled on the board. Angel set down the marker and stretched. The boy stopped halfway through the problem and stared at her. "Maybe next time, sport!" She blew a kiss at him and practically skipped to her seat, a smirk on her face all the way.

The teacher closed his mouth with an audible 'Clack!' and cleared his throat. "Okay, next up." He said, looking at the class for volunteers.

"I'll go." Cassidy raised her hand.

The teacher handed her the marker and looked around. "Who else?" The class didn't meet his gaze, afraid that she would also out-show them.

Angel spoke up, annoyed by the no volunteers. "How about the creepy one in the back?"

Everybody turned to look at Mello. Mello stared back at them.

Angel turned around also, looking straight at him. "How 'bout you? Want to try?"

Mello couldn't find the words to answer her back. She noticed he was there? And from the look of everyone else, she was the only one.

He looked at Cassidy, for a reason he didn't know, and she just smiled and shrugged. "It'll be interesting!" she encouraged.

Mello slowly stood up and made his way to the board. The teacher handed him the marker, and gave them the question. Cassidy and Mello started off at the same time, each at the same pace.

Mello allowed himself to look at his opponent and notice her concentration. He stared back at his problem, raising his hand to finish it, and froze when the teacher shouted "Stop!"

Mello whirled to look at Cassidy, then to the board. The problem was right there, along with the steps to work it out, complete with the answer circled and a chibi cat drawing right next to it.

Cassidy winked at him. "You did good." She made her way back to her seat, sitting next to a tuned-out Angel, who gave her a high five.

Mello felt a hand on his shoulder. "Go back to your seat, Mello." Said the teacher.

As Mello passed Cassidy, he looked over to see Angel smirking at him.

It was then that he realized he was blushing furiously.

xXxXx

Angel plopped down in a chair in a table away from all the other lunch tables. "Are you sure you don't want to eat with me?"

Cassidy rolled her eyes. "I have already told you no. I'm going to the library."

"Ok. I guess I'll have to find somebody else to sit with." Angel looked around the lunch room and cleared her throat. "I can't believe you Cassidy! Whoever can sit with me and keep me company now?" She said in a loud, clear voice.

The table instantly swarmed with boys. Some knocking each other out of seats and some shouting profanities.

When the chaos settled down, Angel smiled at Cassidy. "Pick me up some romance books will you?"

Cassidy laughed and said, "Sure."

She walked away still laughing, never believing she had a friend as crazy as Angel.

xXxXx

Near studied the news. Three fires have been reported in the same area in the same week.

He dug out his white cell phone and called his two guy companions, telling him to meet him.

He hung up and called one of his new recruits, listening to the ringing.

Ring.

Ring.

Ri-

"Hello?" The background was full of laughing boys.

"Angel. Get Cassidy and meet me here."

"Will do chief!" She said in a cheery voice.

Near hung up and looked back at the television screen.

xXxXx

Angel tried not to drop the stack of books as they hurried to meet Near.

"Geez, Cassidy! I said 'some'."

Cassidy blushed. "Sorry, but I know how one isn't enough for you. And, it had a lot of old time and fantasy romances."

Angel sighed. "You're right. And that's why I keep you around!"

Cassidy glared at her and Angel laughed. "I'm your president. _I_ keep _you_ around!"

Angel laughed again. "Sure, sure."

Angel kicked the front door to get Near to notice they were there. Once the door opened, Angel walked in, and ran into someone. She dropped all the books as she fell down from the impact.

"Oops! Sorry Near." Angel said looking up.

Matt looked down at her through his goggles. "What?"

Angel jumped up. "What the hell are _you_ doing here?!"

Matt looked at her, confused. "I live here."

Cassidy, thankfully, walked in on that time. "Oh! Matt right? I don't think we've met." She held out her hand. "Cassidy."

Matt shook her hand. Angel sat picking up books off the floor. Matt kneeled to help and gave Angel her books back when she stood. "Here." He smiled at her.

Angel's heart skipped a beat but she ignored it. She walked away, muttering a 'thank you'.

"I'll be back. I'm gonna go have a smoke." Matt yelled.

Angel almost dropped her books again.

Cassidy followed Angel into the kitchen, and couldn't believe who she saw there. "Mello!"

Mello halted everything he was doing, which was eating a chocolate bar, and slowly turned his head, not wanting to see who he thought he might see.

Sure enough, Cassidy smiled at him. "What are you doing here?"

Mello stood up and bolted out of the room. "I'm going outside."

Angel rolled her eyes at his reaction, and turned to Near. "Okay, what is it?"

Near looked up from the toy Angel and Cassidy figures he was putting by his Matt, Mello and Near figures. "There have been some fires."

Angel sat down. "Where at?"

"In this district."

Cassidy sat down, too. "Was it big?"

Near held up three fingers. "Three houses on fire."

Cassidy gasped and Angel winced. "Ouch. Hope they had insurance."

Matt and Mello came back inside and joined the others. Angel noticed Mello wasn't looking at Cassidy.

Near's gaze slid to the two boys. "Three fires."

"That's too bad." Mello said, his voice not holding a hint od sadness.

"Yes. Well, there are more important things."

Cassidy tilted her head to the side. "Like what?"

"There were also murders."

"Who were the victims?" Matt asked, adjusting his goggles.

"I don't know. The police never let out the name's, thinking that they were related to gangs and they didn't want to cause gang wars."

"So now what?" Mello didn't look interested, just annoyed.

Angel smiled. "I'd say we hack into the police computers."

Near nodded. "I agree. We need at least some police information then we can investigate on out own."

"How do we hack? Mello has no skills and I'm just a gamer." Matt asked.

Angel's smile transformed into a smirk. "I have skills."

"Ok, let's do this then." Near went back to his toys while Matt and Mello stood there shocked. Angel and Cassidy squealed in delight, happy that they get to solve their first crime.


	6. Chapter 5

**I know…I don't update…. **** …..I'm just lazy here!!**

**Ok…onto the show! (It's taking forever….sigh)**

Mello knew he was staring, but he couldn't help himself.

He watched as Cassidy and Angel sat a couple rows in front of him, sitting in the middle of the class. They didn't seem to notice his staring, or his mouth agape, because Cassidy focused on the teacher while Angel slumped a little in her chair and put earphones into her ears. Mello could hear a faint rhythm to a song, and was surprised. He recognized the beat to 'Going Under' by Evanescence, but didn't know Angel was the type to listen to rock music. She was bobbing her head, but Mello was more interested in Cassidy, every now and then glancing at Angel, and rolling her eyes. The teacher was lecturing, and Cassidy seemed to take every word into her mind and keep it there, as if storing information.

The teacher started calling up boys to answer math problems, and noticing Angel in her own world, called on her. Angel wasn't even looking at him, Mello doubted she heard him, and Cassidy nudged her with her elbow. Angel paused her music and looked at the teacher. He gave her a skeptical look and held out the Expo marker. Angel stood up and took it. "Go easy on me, please. I'm not very good at math." The smile she gave the boy she was up against seemed to melt him. Mello resisted the urge to roll his eyes and seen Cassidy shake her head. The teacher said 'Go!' and they scribbled on the board. Angel set down the marker and stretched. The boy stopped halfway through the problem and stared at her. "Maybe next time, sport!" She blew a kiss at him and practically skipped to her seat, a smirk on her face all the way.

The teacher closed his mouth with an audible 'Clack!' and cleared his throat. "Okay, next up." He said, looking at the class for volunteers.

"I'll go." Cassidy raised her hand.

The teacher handed her the marker and looked around. "Who else?" The class didn't meet his gaze, afraid that she would also out-show them.

Angel spoke up, annoyed by the no volunteers. "How about the creepy one in the back?"

Everybody turned to look at Mello. Mello stared back at them.

Angel turned around also, looking straight at him. "How 'bout you? Want to try?"

Mello couldn't find the words to answer her back. She noticed he was there? And from the look of everyone else, she was the only one.

He looked at Cassidy, for a reason he didn't know, and she just smiled and shrugged. "It'll be interesting!" she encouraged.

Mello slowly stood up and made his way to the board. The teacher handed him the marker, and gave them the question. Cassidy and Mello started off at the same time, each at the same pace.

Mello allowed himself to look at his opponent and notice her concentration. He stared back at his problem, raising his hand to finish it, and froze when the teacher shouted "Stop!"

Mello whirled to look at Cassidy, then to the board. The problem was right there, along with the steps to work it out, complete with the answer circled and a chibi cat drawing right next to it.

Cassidy winked at him. "You did good." She made her way back to her seat, sitting next to a tuned-out Angel, who gave her a high five.

Mello felt a hand on his shoulder. "Go back to your seat, Mello." Said the teacher.

As Mello passed Cassidy, he looked over to see Angel smirking at him.

It was then that he realized he was blushing furiously.

xXxXx

Angel plopped down in a chair in a table away from all the other lunch tables. "Are you sure you don't want to eat with me?"

Cassidy rolled her eyes. "I have already told you no. I'm going to the library."

"Ok. I guess I'll have to find somebody else to sit with." Angel looked around the lunch room and cleared her throat. "I can't believe you Cassidy! Whoever can sit with me and keep me company now?" She said in a loud, clear voice.

The table instantly swarmed with boys. Some knocking each other out of seats and some shouting profanities.

When the chaos settled down, Angel smiled at Cassidy. "Pick me up some romance books will you?"

Cassidy laughed and said, "Sure."

She walked away still laughing, never believing she had a friend as crazy as Angel.

xXxXx

Near studied the news. Three fires have been reported in the same area in the same week.

He dug out his white cell phone and called his two guy companions, telling him to meet him.

He hung up and called one of his new recruits, listening to the ringing.

Ring.

Ring.

Ri-

"Hello?" The background was full of laughing boys.

"Angel. Get Cassidy and meet me here."

"Will do chief!" She said in a cheery voice.

Near hung up and looked back at the television screen.

xXxXx

Angel tried not to drop the stack of books as they hurried to meet Near.

"Geez, Cassidy! I said 'some'."

Cassidy blushed. "Sorry, but I know how one isn't enough for you. And, it had a lot of old time and fantasy romances."

Angel sighed. "You're right. And that's why I keep you around!"

Cassidy glared at her and Angel laughed. "I'm your president. _I_ keep _you_ around!"

Angel laughed again. "Sure, sure."

Angel kicked the front door to get Near to notice they were there. Once the door opened, Angel walked in, and ran into someone. She dropped all the books as she fell down from the impact.

"Oops! Sorry Near." Angel said looking up.

Matt looked down at her through his goggles. "What?"

Angel jumped up. "What the hell are _you_ doing here?!"

Matt looked at her, confused. "I live here."

Cassidy, thankfully, walked in on that time. "Oh! Matt right? I don't think we've met." She held out her hand. "Cassidy."

Matt shook her hand. Angel sat picking up books off the floor. Matt kneeled to help and gave Angel her books back when she stood. "Here." He smiled at her.

Angel's heart skipped a beat but she ignored it. She walked away, muttering a 'thank you'.

"I'll be back. I'm gonna go have a smoke." Matt yelled.

Angel almost dropped her books again.

Cassidy followed Angel into the kitchen, and couldn't believe who she saw there. "Mello!"

Mello halted everything he was doing, which was eating a chocolate bar, and slowly turned his head, not wanting to see who he thought he might see.

Sure enough, Cassidy smiled at him. "What are you doing here?"

Mello stood up and bolted out of the room. "I'm going outside."

Angel rolled her eyes at his reaction, and turned to Near. "Okay, what is it?"

Near looked up from the toy Angel and Cassidy figures he was putting by his Matt, Mello and Near figures. "There have been some fires."

Angel sat down. "Where at?"

"In this district."

Cassidy sat down, too. "Was it big?"

Near held up three fingers. "Three houses on fire."

Cassidy gasped and Angel winced. "Ouch. Hope they had insurance."

Matt and Mello came back inside and joined the others. Angel noticed Mello wasn't looking at Cassidy.

Near's gaze slid to the two boys. "Three fires."

"That's too bad." Mello said, his voice not holding a hint od sadness.

"Yes. Well, there are more important things."

Cassidy tilted her head to the side. "Like what?"

"There were also murders."

"Who were the victims?" Matt asked, adjusting his goggles.

"I don't know. The police never let out the name's, thinking that they were related to gangs and they didn't want to cause gang wars."

"So now what?" Mello didn't look interested, just annoyed.

Angel smiled. "I'd say we hack into the police computers."

Near nodded. "I agree. We need at least some police information then we can investigate on out own."

"How do we hack? Mello has no skills and I'm just a gamer." Matt asked.

Angel's smile transformed into a smirk. "I have skills."

"Ok, let's do this then." Near went back to his toys while Matt and Mello stood there shocked. Angel and Cassidy squealed in delight, happy that they get to solve their first crime.


	7. Chapter 6

**I do not own Death Note (I'm not trying to claim it!) because if I did-no offense to Light fans-but Misa-Misa would somehow *magically* get with L. (Sorry, Sawyer.) Oh, and Matt's OOC.**

It was-Angel looked at the clock-6:00 A.M. when she finally broke through the police's firewall.

Angel stretched. She didn't feel tired, just….Blah. She got up, noticing her back ached, and made her way to the kitchen. She was feeling creative (You would too if you hacked into a computer system!) so she dug through the fridge, finding her materials to make a good breakfast. Scrambled eggs.

Angel's mouth watered just thinking of food.

Angel nearly dropped everything she was holding to the ground when someone cleared their throat loudly behind her. She stood straight up, hitting her head on top of the fridge, and turned around.

Matt smirked at her from the doorway. "I see you're up early."

Angel glared at him as she set the food on the counter. "More like didn't sleep." She sighed as she got a bowl out. "What about you? Where are you off to this early in the morning?"

Matt shrugged. "No where really. Just thought I'd get some breakfast, but I got an eyeful of your _ass_ets." Matt grinned, waggling his eyebrows. "Very nice by the way."

Angel rolled her eyes, hoping her face wasn't on fire as much as it felt, and cracked some eggs in the bowl.

"And look!" Matt's lips took an 'O' shape. "You're even cooking me breakfast, too!"

Angel laughed. "Yeah, right! Who stayed up all night?"

Matt shrugged nonchalantly. The phone rang and Angel picked it up.

"Whammy residence." When nobody answered her, Angel tried again. "Hello? May I help you?"

After the soft 'click' Angel stared at the phone. "Wrong number." She murmured to herself.

Matt stretched, giving Angel a good look at his toned stomach when his shirt went up, which she blushed at, and ran his fingers through his hair. "Mello and Near should be up by now."

Angel yawned. "Usually Cassidy is too. But she must have stayed up late waiting for me to go to bed." She added the eggs to the pan she set on the stove, grabbing a spatula.

Matt nodded. "I heard her reading out loud." _And I heard Mello in the hallway, probably listening to her. _Matt thought.

Angel smiled. "It's normal. She loves horror stories. They help her sleep at night."

Matt's laughter startled Angel. "Seriously?!"

Angel smiled. "Yup! She's weird like that."

"I am not weird!"

Angel whirled around. "Cassidy! You almost gave me a heart attack!"

Cassidy stomped over to her, dressed in her school girl outfit. "Good! That's what you'd get for calling me weird!"

Angel turned around, sighing, and stirred up the eggs. "Ok, I'm sorry. I forgot you're a DORK!" Angel turned around fast and poked Cassidy in the stomach.

Cassidy yelped and covered her stomach. "Don't do that!" Cassidy yelled at Angel's giggling face.

Angel, satisfied, turned around and stirred the eggs again. Matt watched in amusement as Cassidy glared at Angel behind her back and was about to hit her with a book. Angel turned down the heat, and deadpanned. "I wouldn't if I were you unless you want to get poked again."

Cassidy froze and stared wide eyed at the back of her head, then rushed out of the kitchen. "See ya!"

When she was gone, Angel let out a burst of laughter. She grabbed a plate and emptied the eggs onto it. "That's what I thought!" She chuckled to herself. She then got out a skillet and went to the fridge to get out bacon. She laid the strips of it in the skillet and turned the stone back on. Matt turned on the radio sitting on the counter. He grimaced at the rap song currently playing and turned the tune button until he got to a rock station. He listened for a little bit then shrugged, deciding that the station was okay. Angel rocked her head to the music, surprising Matt. Sometimes her lips even moved to the words. When the song was over and the first words of the next song started to play, Matt changed the station.

Angel looked up sharply. "Hey! Change it back. I like that song."

Matt raised his eyebrows. "You know Avenged Sevenfold?"

Angel crossed her arms. "Is that a bad thing?" She flipped over the bacon strips, the grease sizzling.

"No. Just… very surprising."

Angel glanced up at him and smiled. Cassidy strode into the room. "I smell bacon." Angel laughed and offered her some. Cassidy took a strip and then rolled her eyes. "How can you guys listen to this stuff? You can barely understand it!"

Angel pulled the plate of bacon away. "Excuse me! This is a good song." Cassidy tried to get another piece but Angel held it out of her reach.

Cassidy sighed and surrendered. "Okay, it's not that bad. Can I have more bacon?"

Angel set the plate down, putting bacon on her own plate. Grabbing a fork, she exited the kitchen.

Matt watched Angel walk away, his gaze running over her. "_Maybe having girl's here isn't so bad._"

The man's face, shadowed by a lamp on the desk in front of him, unfolded into a sneer. "So," he said out loud to himself. "She is there."

He set down the phone and stood up from his squeaky computer chair and stretched. Flipping on the news, his sneer grew as the camera showed a video of a blue house with a white picket fence being swallowed by flames. The words on the screen read: THREE BODIES FOUND. Scratching his chin, the man let out a breath, letting out a slow 'oops'. Then, turning off the television, he walked over to the map pinned to his wall and picked up a red marker. Crossing off the house on his map with a big X, he laughed.

"This isn't the end."

Angel's head slammed into the desk with a loud "thump!" for the third time that day. Cassidy sighed and looked back to the math teacher currently giving a lecture.

"Does she always do that?"

Cassidy glanced over at Mello and rolled her eyes. "Pretty much. She has no will power when it comes to staying awake or going to bed." Studying Angel's now snoring form, she added, "After two days of hacking into the police files you'd think she'd be rejuvenated." Cassidy shrugged. "Oh well. I guess blondes are always lazy."

Cassidy suddenly yelped. Angel smirked. "What about blondes?"

"Nothing!" Cassidy opened her notebook and put her full attention to the teacher.

Angel yawned and pulled out a map of the town. She took out a blue marker and put an X on a house. Studying it, she frowned. _The houses can't just be random. There must be a reason for the House Burner to burn in this pattern. _Angel scratched her head and sighed. Just her luck to be the one to figure out what the houses have in common!

"Angel!"

Angel's head snapped up to look at the teacher who was glaring at her.

"What is the symbol for a square root?"

Angel glared at the teacher, suddenly pissed. Was he serious? Did he honestly think she knew nothing?

"It's a small two on the top of the number." Angel was about to go back to the map, but the teacher interrupted her again.

"The right side." Angel gritted out.

The teacher had an amused twitch to his mouth. "That's right!" His eyes turned hard. "Pay attention and stop doodling."

Angel rolled her eyes and went back to studying the map when the teacher turned back to the board.

_Symbols, my ass! Like he needed to know the symbol! Symbols are stupid, anyway!_

_Wait….symbols…._

Angel looked back at the map, a new idea in her head. Giddy with excitement, she grabbed her things and stuffed them into her backpack. Cassidy looked at her in shock. "Angel, what are you…?"

"I'll tell you two later!" Angel waved at Cassidy and Mello and ignored the teacher's yelling. "Bye!"

Angel barged into the Whammy residence and ran up to Near, who looked at her with surprised eyes set in an expressionless face. "I found something!" Angel huffed out as she bent over to put her hands on her knees and catch her breath. After breathing deeply, Angel's blue eyes met Near's nearly black ones. "The houses burning. It means something!" Angel showed him her map, and pointed to the blue X's. "Do you see that? It's almost in a line. Just like up here." Angel pointed to an upper section of the X's.

Near put his thumb to his lip. "And what are you trying to say?"

Angel smiled. "It could be a symbol! Or a sign! Something that can maybe be a message to tell us who he is or what he's after!"

Near nodded. "You may have something here."

Excited, Angel hugged Near, who almost toppled out of his chair.


	8. Chapter 7

**I'm actually getting to the point of this whole story. Finally! I'm proud of myself.**

"Would you like to order, miss?"

Angel looked up at the waitress, clad in a red dress and white apron. Her fake smile made Angel want to punch her. Instead, Angel gave her a fake smile back-it looked more like a sneer-and said, "No thank you." In a sugary tone that made the waitress turn around and walk away with a look of slight shock on her face.

Turning back around, Angel stared back at the passing cars through the café window. Her eyelids felt heavy from exhaustion and she sipped her two-hour old coffee. Sighing, she stood up and walked out into the snow. She ignored the people passing by, and, thankfully, they gave her the same treatment. Sitting on a bench in the park, she looked up at the falling snowflakes, and thought about the scene that had taken place at the Whammy residence two hours prior.

_Two hours ago…_

"Angel, this is great!" Cassidy hugged Angel. "We actually have a lead!"

Angel laughed. "It's only an idea. It's not like I solved the whole investigation."

Cassidy shrugged. "True, but we got something to go by." Cassidy plopped down on the couch. "Anyway, Near, you were saying something?"

Near cleared his throat. "Yes. I was saying that now that we have at least something, we still need to look more into this. If we find out an idea of the symbol, we may be able to locate the next house or houses he or she will burn next." Near set a black doll with a white question mark on its chest in front of a group of dolls that looked like Matt, Mello, Angel, Cassidy, and himself. "We can also maybe track them down by seeing what is making he or she do this and why."

Angel sat down. "Exactly! And when we do that-BAM!" Angel punched her palm. "Jail time for the Home Smoker!"

Mello stood up. "Hold on. We still don't even know if what she said is true. It's just a theory. We need more evidence." Mello glanced at Matt, who was lounging next to Angel playing his Game Boy. "Matt and I have street smarts. We could ask around and get some information."

Angel raised her hand. "I have already tried. Nobody knows anything. This guy is low-key."

Mello crossed his arms. "It's because you don't have any connections to the street."

Angel glanced at him. "You'd be surprised."

Matt turned off his Game Boy and sat up. "Okay, so nobody on the street knows anything. The police have jack shit. So where does that leave us? What other options do we have?"

Near put his thumb to his lip and sat with his back turned toward the group. "That means we have to let the person continue what he or she is doing."

Angel jumped up. "What?!" Crossing over to stand directly behind Near, she crossed her arms. "Hell no! Like I'm ever going to let that happen!"

Near turned around and looked up at Angel. "It's the only way we can actually see if this is a symbol or he or she is just burning random homes."

Angel paced. "Then screw my theory about it being a symbol! Let's just say it's some person who wants to fuck up the police's minds." Turning back to Near, she glared at him. "I am not going to let that killer hurt anyone else!"

Near sighed. "True, people may get hurt. But it'll be like a sacrifice to bring the burner down."

Angel fumed. "A sacrifice?!" Cassidy stood and tried to pull Angel away, but Angel stepped away from her. "You want these people to sacrifice themselves?!"

Near's voice raised a little higher, a slight giveaway to the rising of his almost nonexistent temper. "There is nothing else we can do, Angel. You're being irrational."

Angel stomped up close to him. "_I'm_ being irrational? You want these people to die! What if they are children?! Kids who haven't even had a future! Babies! Toddlers! Even teenagers like me and you! Don't you dare tell me I'm being irrational, Near, because, damn you, I'm thinking about the damn consequences of these actions you are wanting to take!"

Near turned back around. "We are going to let the House Burner continue what it is doing. End of discussion."

Angel hissed out her breath and backed away. "Fuck you, Near!" Walking quickly to the front door, she shoved her arms through her coat.

Cassidy ran and grabbed her arm. "Where are you going? Let's talk about this."

Angel pulled away from her. "We are done talking about it. Let the braincase do what he wants. It can be on his head when people die, not mine." Angel opened the door, and paused. Turning back around to face Cassidy, who looked at her with worry, she whispered, "I'll be back. I'm going to walk around and think things through." With that, she turned and walked out, slamming the door behind her.

_Present time…_

"I figured you'd be here."

Angel, startled, whirled around to face Matt. She sighed. "That's the second time you startled me. Could you at least show me some sign that you're behind me?" Angel turned back around to stare at the snow covered ground. "Besides, it's not like you know me that much anyway, so how would you know I'm here?"

Matt chuckled. "Okay, you caught me. Cassidy told me you'd be here. She said something about you mentioning having a snowball fight here when you arrived." Matt sat beside Angel.

Angel sat in silence for a few seconds. "How is she doing?"

Matt glared at the ground. "Besides you disappearing for two hours straight, not calling, and making her panic of all of the possibilities that could have happened to you, she's doing great for someone who's still shaken up." Matt lit a cigarette and blew out a breath of smoke. "Hell, it made me think of what could have happened to you. Rape, murder…" Matt tensed. "You have no idea of what guys would do to you if they ever got you alone."

Angel stood up and walked away. "I know what they would do, but I can take care of myself."

"Are you sure about that?" Matt threw his cigarette to the ground and grabbed Angel's wrist and spun her around. Grabbing her other wrist, he pinned her on a tree, her wrists above her head.

Angel felt the tree through her coat. She glared at Matt. "What the hell are you doing?"

Matt's brown eyes went hard. "Throw me off."

"What are you saying?" Angel struggled. "Matt, get off. This isn't funny."

Matt didn't budge. "Since you are so keen on thinking you can protect yourself, prove it. Show me that you can throw off someone who is more powerful than you."

Angel's eyes flashed panic. She pushed against Matt's hands hard, but he still didn't move. She tried to knee Matt in the groin but he pushed his body against her. Becoming more determined, she bit his arm. Matt winced but didn't let up, only pushed her wrists by her head.

"Do you feel what I'm feeling, Angel? That, no matter what you do, I could take anything I want from you?" Matt brought his face close to hers. Angel looked away. "You're powerless. If I wanted to, you'd be down onto the ground. Nobody would be here to hear you scream or cry. Do you understand? Huh, Angel? Do you get it?" Angel looked back at Matt's face. "Do you get what any guy could do to you if they catch you alone?" Matt's eyes softened. "Do you know how much they could hurt you? Damage you? Traumatize you?" Matt let go of her wrists and grabbed her upper arms, shaking her. "You don't know the kind of people in this world. When you walk the streets alone at night, they find ways to hurt you." Matt released her and stepped away. Angel could only stare at him. "When you ran away from the house, my heart nearly stopped. Here we are trying to catch a killer and you just run out into the streets like all's well." Matt looked away and shoved a hand through his maroon hair. "I looked everywhere for you! I went through half of a package of cigarettes in about an hour. I finally called the house in panic, yelling at Cassidy to think of places you'd be. You've only been here a week and yet you run out like you know this damn city." He took a deep breath. "You know, you have people who care for you."

"…I'm sorry."

Matt looked at Angel and was about to continue about how sorry wasn't good enough, but stopped when he seen tears running down her cheeks.

"I'm sorry." Angel said again. "I'm so sorry. I didn't realize you guys were worrying about me." Angel touched her cheeks, shocked that she was crying. She paused and started wiping her cheeks frantically. "I'm such a bitch! I run out of the house, leave for two hours without calling, and now I'm crying-which I never do!-and making you feel bad for scolding me. I deserved the scolding. And I deserve it if you guys hate me after this."

Matt sighed and stepped forward to wipe Angel's cheeks. "You're not a bitch. You're just an idiot."

Angel laughed a little, but that only made more tears fall. "Stop-" Sniffle. "-trying to make me laugh. It's not-" Another sniffle. "-funny."

Matt chuckled. "Sorry. Let's go before you get a cold and Cassidy floods the house." Matt took her hand and started walking her back to his car. "She was crying the last time I seen her and Mello was trying to cheer her up." Matt got an idea. "You should have seen it! He was reading her ghost stories and trying to tell jokes. He's very horrible at telling jokes."

Angel laughed, and Matt became relieved. "Was he also dancing?"

Matt laughed. "You should have seen him. He was doing the doe-see-doe."

Angel laughed harder. "Whatever! He'd never do that." Angel sighed and hugged Matt's back, wrapping her arms around his stomach. "Thank you for coming to get me."

Matt froze and turned around. Cupping Angel's face, and ignoring her startled expression, he kissed her.

Angel was too shocked to move, but then melted into him. When the kiss was over, her face was on fire and she was light headed. "Wow." Angel smiled up at him. "I'd rather prefer a kiss in the rain, preferably not a kiss after I was crying, but this is still romantic."

Matt chuckled. "There's the Angel we all know and love!"

Angel paused. "Wait, what does this mean exactly?"

Matt released Angel and walked away. Looking over his shoulder, he said, "What do you think it means?"

Angel looked at him walking away and touched her lips. _He likes me_. _And he was worried about me. _Smiling to herself, she ran to catch up to Matt, and then jogged past him. "Last one to the car buys pocky!"

Matt yelled "Hey!" and took off after her.

The man watched the couple run towards their car, and his blood boiled. How dare they act as if they don't have a care in the world?! She should be worrying about catching him, not kissing some guy. It made him sick just watching her giggle and tease the boy.

Taking out his lighter, he flicked it open and lit his cigarette.

"Giggle all you want. But I'll be laughing while another house gets swallowed by flames." He laughed. "And it'll be nice to see your eyes cloud with fear, Angel."

Turning on his car and putting it into drive, he headed to his newest targeted neighborhood.


End file.
